Canadians learned how to fall back in love with the outdoors this summer. With restrictions on activities and gatherings indoors lasting throughout the spring and early summer, and many Canadians treating indoor dining and similar activities with caution, they embraced sunny afternoons in the park, meeting friends on porches and backyards, and patio dining – sometimes even in unusual set-ups as restaurants took over sidewalks and curb lanes to accommodate their customers.
But with the fall comes colder weather, and it’s back indoors for many. Knowing that they’ll be making more use of their home for the foreseeable future, many people are moving out of the city in search of more space. Home has become the office, the classroom, the restaurant – everything. It makes sense that people want more space to enjoy it.
If you’re looking to move out of the city and enjoy more space somewhere, as Niagara home builders, Blythwood Homes may have the dream home you’re looking for. With our spacious detached and townhome bungalows featuring plenty of outdoor space, you can find your sanctuary in Niagara.
We’ve put some ideas together for crafting the perfect home for cocooning in style. Put some of these ideas into practice, and you’ll have everything you need to bundle up for the fall and cocoon in style, right at home.
The Perfect Home Office (or Classroom)
It’s become more important than ever now to have a quality home office or study space. Many companies have moved to work-from-home, and about two-thirds of office workers expect to continue remote work after the pandemic. While many of them have turned to make-shift conversions of kitchen tables and corners in the living room, there are a lot of benefits to having a dedicated home office.
Having a designated work area is one of the best tips for having a productive work-from-home day. Other tips include doing things like:
- Take a real lunch break and eat in a different room;
- Step outside occasionally for a walk or to grab a coffee;
- Tidy up clutter and start the day with a fresh workspace;
- Get out of your pyjamas and dress for the workday (not that you can’t keep things casual).
What works well for a workspace? A converted den or finished basement offers a lot of space that can be used as a home office or classroom.
Organization Tips for Your Work/Study Space
As we head into the midpoint between summer vacations and the winter holidays, work and school are clicking into gear and it’s full-steam ahead. Having a routine down is the best way to keep up with the pace.
Keeping your home office organized is a big part of keeping up with a normal routine. Investing in a few simple organizational features and storage will go a long way toward completing your home office.
1) Invest in Your Desk
A good desk is where it all starts. One of the most important things to look for in a good desk is that it has enough space for your needs. Do you often spread papers out at your office? Make sure there’s room for more than just your desktop. It also helps to have a few drawers for storing all your basic office equipment.
2) Maximize Limited Space with Storage
There’s only so much room available, and you don’t exactly want your home to be taken over by storage. A smart but attractive system for keeping files and documents will go a long way. If you have a bookshelf that isn’t occupied, some magazine butlers can be an elegant, non-intrusive storage solution.
3) Find the Right Task Lighting
When you’re writing and reading documents in paper format, task lighting will give your eyes a welcome break. While ambient lighting is used to light a general area (like your overhead lights), task lighting illuminates a specific area to help you do things like reading without straining your eyes.
All-Day Breakfast in Your Own Kitchen
Enough about work, what about the weekend? Cozying up at home on one of those chilly fall weekends is a priceless way to relax after a busy week. One of the problems many people who are new to the work-from-home routine face is separating work from leisure now that it all happens in the same space.
One way is to shake up your usual routine with some different meal ideas. “Breakfast for dinner” will shake things up in a way that’s fun and totally easy. Traditional breakfast foods like bacon, eggs, waffles, and pancakes are pretty versatile, and they can easily be adapted into savoury dinner options.
You can also find inspiration from around the world. Shakshuka, traditionally eaten as a breakfast food across the Middle East, makes for a pretty satisfying dinner as well, as it’s loaded with eggs, onion, peppers, and onion. Serve with bread or pita for an eggy, mouth-watering experience. Check out this easy-to-make recipe that uses ingredients you can easily find at the supermarket to spice up your dinner-time this weekend.
Cocoon in Style in Your Niagara Dream Home
Home is more important than ever right now. It’s a place to be productive, a place to relax, and a place to feel safe in an unpredictable world. If you’re looking to get out of the city and use your budget to find a bigger place, you can find the move in ready home of your dreams in Niagara.
Houses from Blythwood Homes are built with an attention to craftsmanship, quality, and an eye for detail. We build elegant communities throughout the Niagara Region where you can enjoy the best the peninsula has to offer. You can see some of our past communities to get a sense of the kinds of neighbourhoods and homes we’re proud to build.
Home should be a place where you have everything you need. Find your move in ready dream home today.